Dhaka: The Election Commission (EC) has commenced the voter registration process and National Identity Card (NID) issuance for Bangladeshi expatriates living in the United States, Oman, Maldives, Jordan, and South Africa. This initiative follows the necessary approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, A S M Humayun Kabir, Director General of the EC's National Identity Registration Division, confirmed the development. He stated that after receiving the approval, the preliminary steps required to launch the initiative in these countries have been initiated. The process involves the deployment of manpower and essential equipment.
Previously, the EC had limited approval for voter registration activities in the US to Los Angeles. However, the commission has now obtained permission to expand these activities to Washington D.C., New York, and other cities where Bangladesh has official representation. Among these, New York holds significant interest due to its large Bangladeshi community.
The EC had earlier initiated voter registration and NID issuance in several other countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Italy, the United Kingdom, Kuwait, Qatar, Malaysia, Australia, and Canada, all with prior approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The data from the EC reveals that 48,080 expatriate voters across nine countries have submitted applications. Of these, biometric data has been collected from 29,646 individuals, and 17,367 have been approved for inclusion as voters.
Several countries are still awaiting approval for similar initiatives, including Bahrain, Lebanon, Libya, Sudan, Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong, Egypt, Brunei, Mauritius, Iraq, other areas in the United States, Greece, Spain, Germany, Japan, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Brazil, China, Indonesia, New Zealand, Russia, Turkey, and Cyprus.
A letter from the EC Secretariat to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on July 2 indicated readiness to initiate voter registration activities in the aforementioned countries. The EC has prioritized seeking approval for the United States, Maldives, Turkey, Jordan, South Africa, Oman, Egypt, and France.